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Iota Publishing, a regional publishing house based in Irvine, California, introduced its 2007 novel writing competition today. Iota seeks unpublished authors who have completed manuscripts in the thriller, mystery, suspense, or sci-fi genres. The winner will receive a $1000 prize and a publishing contract with Iota. Submissions are via the Iota website (http://www.IotaPublishing.com/IotaWritingContestLink.asp ). The competition is open through April 2, 2007.

The regional publisher is focusing on manuscripts with a Southwest connection, either by the author's personal connection or by some element in the manuscript. To be eligible, authors must not be previously published in these genres.

Terry Cooper, Iota President, said, "Iota's mission is about finding new regional authors. This contest is another way to reach out and encourage authors to give this path to publication a try."

The three finalists' manuscripts will be read by judges Sherri L. Board, Wendy Hornsby and Neal Stevens. Board is the author of the Katlin LaMar Mystery Series, Angels of Anguish and Blind Belief. Hornsby won the Edgar Award for her short story Nine Sons and is also the author of the Maggie McGowan Mystery Series. Stevens is a literary agent and a TV and film producer in Los Angeles. His films include Gunshy and The Money Shot. All three judges live in Southern California.

Iota's debut book, a new mystery novel, Anatomy Lesson, by Edgar-Award nominee Raymond Obstfeld will be the first in a series about an Orange County district attorney with an almost supernatural memory she's kept a secret from everyone. Obstfeld teaches creative writing at Orange Coast College and is the author of over forty works of fiction and non-fiction. His non-fiction work, On the Shoulders of Giants: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's Journey Through the Harlem Renaissance, co-written with basketball legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, published by Simon & Schuster, is available now. A documentary based on the book, also written by Obstfeld, will be released shortly.